A DRIVER jumped a red light then ploughed into a tree stump after police tried to pull him over, a court heard.

Officers saw a noisy Vauxhall Astra with a smoking exhaust pipe being driven at 20mph in Westhoughton on March 9, and decided to stop the driver.

But Lindsay Thomas, prosecuting, said instead of pulling over when instructed, Craig Jeffrey drove off through a red light at the junction of Cricketers Way and Leigh Road.

He turned into Rosebery Street, losing control and crashing into a tree stump, Bolton Crown Court heard.

Jeffrey, aged 25, of Townsfield Road, Westhoughton, tried to run away but was found hiding in a bush.

He pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention and without a licence or insurance.

Adam Brown, defending, said Jeffrey was now trying to set up a business as a handyman.

Judge Timothy Stead fined Jeffrey £180 and banned him from driving for 12 months. The judge told him: “It wasn’t a very admirable performance on your part.”